Native Plants for Dry Soils
Dry? In the Pacific Northwest?
Yes, dry sites can occur on developed land with compacted soils, south or west-facing cliffs, well-draining shorelines, open prairies, and more within our rainforest-covered ecoregion.
This article highlights plants that prefer dry soils, but each description states the range in moisture they tolerate. It is part of our Species Selection Guide where we share select collections of plants based on their ecosystem services, site condition needs, or material type.
Which Plants Prefer Dry Soils?
Sunny, dry sites present extremely challenging conditions for transplanting and success rates are generally low. Sunny, dry sites benefit the most from irrigation. If irrigation is unavailable, plant in the fall and apply mulch for best survival.
It is also critical to choose species that are most likely to hang tough in the midst of the summer drought. These are species typically found in well-drained soil and even recent transplants are somewhat drought tolerant.
These species lists are not comprehensive of the incredible native diversity of our Pacific Northwest region. For fuller lists of SNP favorites, see our Species Descriptions. For more complete databases, we recommend visiting our friends at the University of Washington Burke Herbarium or Washington Native Plant Society.
What Characterizes Dry Soils?
Dry means that a plant prefers arid soils. In our Pacific Northwest region, this often means soils that are very well draining that do not retain water for long periods of time.
However, dry comes in many degrees and variations. One person’s dry may be very different than another’s. Most plant descriptions include the species' prefered range. Moisture gradients can also vary by sun exposure. Be mindful of a plant's specific sun and moisture gradients when planning your project.
As plant habitats follow a continuum, there is overlap between this list, moist, and wet lists. To learn more about these classifications, visit our Species Descriptions: Terms page.
Unless otherwise stated, all plant information comes from our Species Descriptions, where we invite you to read about more plants native to our Pacific Northwest.
Native Plants for Dry Soils
Plant lists are organized by layer. It is important to consider all layers in any project.
Tree Layer
Abies grandis
Exposure: Full sun to shade
Soil moisture: Moist to dry
Salinity tolerance: None
Fire tolerance: High
Transplanting success: High
Growth rate: Moderate
Form: Coniferous evergreen to 260 feet; deep, extensive root system
Comments: Requires well-draining soils
You can deep dive into grand fir in our Plant of the Month Archive!
Acer macrophyllum
Exposure: Full sun to shade
Soil moisture: Wet to dry
Salinity tolerance: None
Fire tolerance: High
Transplanting success: High
Growth rate: Rapid
Form: Deciduous large tree to 110 feet; deep, wide spreading roots
Comments: Super versatile on both the moisture and sun exposure gradients
Arbutus menziesii
Exposure: Sun to partial shade
Soil moisture: Dry and well-drained
Salinity tolerance: None
Fire tolerance: Medium
Transplanting success: Very low
Growth rate: Slow
Form: Broadleaf evergreen tree to 75 feet; deep taproot
Comments: Assume large transplanting losses; do not over-water
You can deep dive into the difficulties of transplanting Pacific madrone on our information sheet The Challenges Of Establishing Pacific Madrone!
Pacific flowering dogwood
Cornus nuttallii
Exposure: Part sun to part shade
Soil moisture: Moist to dry
Salinity tolerance: Medium
Fire tolerance: None
Transplanting success: Unknown
Growth rate: Moderate
Form: Multi-stemmed deciduous tree to 60 feet, often much shorter
Comments: Requires moist, but well-draining soils. Assume losses to disease. Plant at an edge with stem in shade
Data from the USDA Plant Characteristics Database and the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
Frangula purshiana
Exposure: Full sun to shade
Soil moisture: Wet to dry
Salinity tolerance: None
Fire tolerance: Medium
Transplanting success: High
Growth rate: Rapid
Form: Deciduous tree to 30 feet; fibrous, moderately deep root system with taproot
Comments: Very versatile along the moisture spectrum. Great for riparian areas
Pinus contorta v. contorta
Exposure: Full sun to partial shade
Soil moisture: Wet to dry
Salinity tolerance: None
Fire tolerance: None
Transplanting success: High
Growth rate: Rapid
Form: Coniferous evergreen tree to 60 feet; tap root
Comments: Very versatile along the moisture spectrum
Pseudotsuga menziesii v. menziesii
Exposure: Full sun to light shade
Soil moisture: Moist to dry
Salinity tolerance: Low
Fire tolerance: Low
Transplanting success: High
Growth rate: Moderate to rapid
Form: Evergreen tree to 200 or 300 feet; tap or modified taproot, shallow or deep, widespread root system
Comments: Very versatile along the moisture spectrum
Quercus garryana
Exposure: Full sun to partial shade
Soil moisture: Moist to dry, well-drained
Salinity tolerance: None
Fire tolerance: Low
Transplanting success: Medium to high
Growth rate: Slow to moderate
Form: Deciduous tree to 80 feet; deep taproot
You can deep dive into Garry oak, or Oregon white oak, in our Plant of the Month Archive!
Salix scouleriana
Exposure: Full sun to partial shade
Soil moisture: Moderately dry to moist
Salinity tolerance: Low
Fire tolerance: High
Transplanting success: High (both container-grown & live stakes)
Growth rate: Moderate to rapid
Form: Deciduous tree or shrub to 40 feet; fibrous, moderately deep and widespread roots
Comments: Drier sites and marine shores, roots slowly, often lower success rate than other willows, a shrub-tree that can grow <60' tall
Shrub Layer
Acer circinatum
Exposure: Partial shade to deep shade, full sun if ample soil moisture
Soil moisture: Moist to dry
Salinity tolerance: None
Fire tolerance: Medium
Transplanting success: High
Growth rate: Moderate
Form: Deciduous small tree or large shrub to 20 ft; moderately deep root system
Comments: Slower growing, a survivor
You can deep dive into vine maple on our blog post, Vine Maples as Foliage Trees for Rubies and Bees!
Amelanchier alnifolia
Exposure: Full sun to shade
Soil moisture: Moist to dry
Salinity tolerance: Low
Fire tolerance: High
Transplanting success: Medium
Growth rate: Moderate, may be slow to establish
Form: Deciduous large shrub or small tree to 20 feet; tap root, may spread by suckers
Comments: In moist conditions, well draining soils are required
Corylus cornuta v. californica
Exposure: Sun to deep shade
Soil moisture: Moist and well-drained to dry
Salinity tolerance: None
Fire tolerance: High
Transplanting success: Medium-high
Growth rate: Moderate
Form: Deciduous shrub 4-12 feet; branching, roots, suckers occasionally
Comments: Slower growing, a survivor. Requires moist, but well-draining soils
Gaultheria shallon
Exposure: Partial shade to deep shade
Soil moisture: Moist to dry
Salinity tolerance: None
Fire tolerance: High
Transplanting success: Medium to high if shaded, low if not
Growth rate: Slow until established
Form: Evergreen shrub 2-5 feet, sometimes more; very shallow and fibrous root system, spreads vigorously by underground stems once well established
Holodiscus discolor
Exposure: Full sun to shade
Soil moisture: Moist to dry
Salinity tolerance: None
Fire tolerance: Medium
Transplanting success: High
Growth rate: Rapid
Form: Deciduous large shrub to 12 feet; branching, fibrous, moderately deep root system, sometimes spreads by root suckers
Comments: Does well on marine bluffs!
You can deep dive into oceanspray in our Plant of the Month Archive!
Mahonia aquifolium
Exposure: Full sun to partial shade
Soil moisture: Moist to dry
Salinity tolerance: None
Fire tolerance: Unknown
Transplanting success: Medium to high
Growth rate: Moderate
Form: Evergreen shrub to 8 feet; moderately deep taproot, spreads by underground stems
Comments: Versatile along the moisture spectrum
Mahonia nervosa
Exposure: Shade
Soil moisture: Moist to dry
Salinity tolerance: None
Fire tolerance: High
Transplanting success: Medium
Growth rate: Slow
Form: Evergreen shrub to 2 feet; taproot, spreads by underground stems
Comments: Plant in shade; mulch; irrigate
Oemleria cerasiformis
Exposure: Partial shade to shade
Soil moisture: Moist to dry
Salinity tolerance: Low
Fire tolerance: Unknown
Transplanting success: High
Growth rate: Moderate to rapid
Form: Deciduous small tree to 15 feet; branching, fibrous, shallow root system
You can deep dive into osoberry in our Plant of the Month Archive!
Philadelphus lewisii
Exposure: Full sun to partial shade
Soil moisture: Moderately moist to dry
Salinity tolerance: None
Fire tolerance: Low
Transplanting success: Medium to high
Growth rate: Rapid
Form: Deciduous shrub to 10 feet; moderately deep, branching roots
Comments: Requires moist, but well-draining soils.
You can deep dive into mock orange in our Plant of the Month Archive!
Rhododendron macrophyllum
Exposure: Partial shade to shade
Soil moisture: Moderately moist to dry
Salinity tolerance: None
Fire tolerance: Medium
Transplanting success: Low to medium
Growth rate: Slow
Form: Evergreen shrub to 20 feet; fibrous, massive, and shallow roots
Comments: Mulch; shade; irrigate; be patient for it to grow
Ribes sanguineum
Exposure: Sun to part shade
Soil moisture: Dry
Salinity tolerance: None
Fire tolerance: Medium
Transplanting success: Medium
Growth rate: Moderate
Form: Deciduous shrub to 10 feet; branching root system
Comments: Plant only in well drained soils; don't over water
Rosa gymnocarpa
Exposure: Partial shade to shade
Soil moisture: Moist to dry
Salinity tolerance: None
Fire tolerance: Medium
Transplanting success: Medium
Growth rate: Moderate
Form: Deciduous shrub to 6 feet; spreads by suckers
Rosa nutkana
Exposure: Full sun to partial shade
Soil moisture: Wet to moist, dry okay if shaded
Salinity tolerance: Low
Fire tolerance: High
Transplanting success: High
Growth rate: Rapid
Form: Deciduous shrub to 10 feet; branched, fibrous, shallow roots, spreads vigorously by suckers
Comments: Very versatile along the moisture spectrum
Salix geyeriana
Exposure: Full to part sun
Soil moisture: Saturated to dry
Salinity tolerance: None
Fire tolerance: High
Transplanting success: Unknown
Growth rate: Rapid
Form: Multi-stemmed deciduous shrub to 15 feet
Comments: Good rooter, prefers year-round saturated soil, inundated banks and muddy shores
Information sourced from OregonFlora and the USDA Plant Characteristics database in addition to our Species Selection Guide.
Sambucus racemosa
Exposure: Full sun to shade
Soil moisture: Moist to dry
Salinity tolerance: None
Fire tolerance: High
Transplanting success: Medium
Growth rate: Rapid
Form: Deciduous shrub to 20 feet; fibrous, branching, shallow root system
Symphoricarpos albus
Exposure: Full sun to shade
Soil moisture: Very moist to dry
Salinity tolerance: Medium
Fire tolerance: High
Transplanting success: High
Growth rate: Rapid
Form: Deciduous shrub to 2-6 feet; fibrous, shallow root system, spreads vigorously by suckers
Comments: Very versatile along the moisture spectrum
Vaccinium ovatum
Exposure: Partial shade to shade
Soil moisture: Moist to dry
Salinity tolerance: None
Fire tolerance: Medium
Transplanting success: Medium
Growth rate: Slow until established
Form: Evergreen shrub to 12 feet; fibrous, shallow root system
Comments: Requires moist, but well-draining soils
You can deep dive into our PNW Hucks on our blog post, Huckleberries as Specimen Shrub Candy for your Eyes and Tongue!
Vaccinium parvifolium
Exposure: Shade to deep shade
Soil moisture: Moist to dry
Salinity tolerance: None
Fire tolerance: High
Transplanting success: Low to medium
Growth rate: Slow until established
Form: Deciduous shrub to 12 feet; deep and spreading, woody roots
Comments: Plant in shade and mulch with wood chips. Irrigate but don't over-water. Requires moist, but well-draining soils
You can deep dive into our PNW Hucks on our blog post, Huckleberries as Specimen Shrub Candy for your Eyes and Tongue!
Floor Layer
Arctostaphylos uva-ursi
Exposure: Full sun to partial shade
Soil moisture: Moist to dry
Salinity tolerance: Medium
Fire tolerance: Low
Transplanting success: Medium
Growth rate: Slow until established
Form: Evergreen shrub or groundcover to 8 inches, mat forming with stolons
Bloom color: Pinky-white
Comments: Requires well-draining soils
You can deep dive into kinnikinnik and other groundcovers on our blog post, Groundcovers: the Quick, the Evergreen, the Sunny & the Shady!
Dicentra formosa
Exposure: Partial shade to shade
Soil moisture: Moist, dry in shade okay
Salinity tolerance: None
Fire tolerance: High
Transplanting success: High
Growth rate: Rapid
Form: Soft herbaceous perennial to 20 inches, from slender, fleshy rhizomes
Bloom color: Pink to purple
Fragaria chiloensis
Exposure: Full sun to partial shade
Soil moisture: Moist to dry
Salinity tolerance: Low
Fire tolerance: High
Transplanting success: High
Growth rate: Rapid
Form: Leathery, somewhat evergreen perennial to 10 inches, spreads by runners
Bloom color: White
Comments: Requires well-draining soils and does well in sand
You can deep dive into coastal strawberry on TWO of our blog posts, Groundcovers: the Quick, the Evergreen, the Sunny & the Shady and Strawberries for Groundcover & Snacks! (We don't pick favorites)....
Polystichum munitum
Exposure: Partial shade to shade
Soil moisture: Moist to dry
Salinity tolerance: None
Fire tolerance: Medium
Transplanting success: High
Growth rate: Moderate
Form: Evergreen fern with fronds to 5 feet, woody rhizomes